Spring-wheel for vehicles.



G. F. QUICK. SPRING WHEEL FOR VEHICLES. APPLICATION FILED 11113.1, 1909.

967,553. Patented Aug. 16,1910.

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SPRING-WHEEL FOR VEHICLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Am. 16, 1910.

Application filed March 1, 1909. Serial No. 480,703.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES F. QUICK, a citizen of the United States,residing at Yonkers, in the county of Westchester and State of New York,have invented an I-mprovement in Spring-VVheels for Vehicles, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in wheels for vehicles andparticularly to wheels for automobiles, with the object of compensatingboth for the strain of weight compression, and the strain of drivingtorsion.

In carrying out my invention and in combination with a hub, radialspokes and a rim or annulus, I provide a tire of circular cross sectionand hollow, and at spaced apart intervals connecting the rim and tireare devices which yield radially for the weight applied and which yieldsubstantially tangentially of the rim for the driving strain or torsion.The tire is preferably of substantially unyielding metal with anydesired arrangement of tread surface, and the yielding devices aresprings preferably of helical form and the devices associated with saidsprings and the manner of arranging the same are all hereinafter moreparticularly set forth.

In the drawing, Figure 1 is an elevation of a complete wheel accordingto my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical section in the plane of the wheelshowing so much of the spring devices as are necessary for a completeunderstanding of the invention in view of the fact that all of thespring devices of the several series are alike and duplicate. Fig. 3 isa cross section at about the dotted line m, 00, of Fig. 1, and Fig. 4:is a longitudinal section showing a modification.

A suitable hub a adapted to surround an axle or shaft 6 is provided withradial spokes c and an endless rim (Z. The spokes are screwed into thehub or secured in any desired manner and they pass through openings inthe rim cl. Their free ends are advantageously threaded and theprojecting parts of the said spokes beyond the rim (Z are connected tothe thimbles (Z screwed onto the same and secured by pins 3, and one ormore nuts 2 are threaded upon the spokes inside the rim (Z and areforced against the inner surface of the rim co-acting with the thimbles(Z to securely and rigidly hold the rim d to the spokes c.

6 represents the tire with a tread surface e of any desired character togrip the surface traveled over and prevent slipping. This tire ispreferably formed of spring steel or other suitable metal. In crosssection it is slightly more than semi-circular with a flattened outerand upper surface and the same is connected to the structure formed bythe hub, spokes and rim, by the devices hereinafter described.

f represents a socket member of cylindrical construction open at one endand closed at the other by a head of substantial thickness. A post f issecured centrally to the socket member by its threaded stem f whichpasses through the head portion of the socket member and extends beyondthe head. The post passes through a slot i in the rim (3, the length ofwhich slotis in the plane of the wheel. This slot is shown in Fig. 2.The inner surface of the socket head is spaced away from the outersurface of the rim (Z, and in the rim (Z parallel with the slot t and ateither side of the slot are formed channels or ball-ways for the seriesof anti-friction balls 8, and grooves to receive said balls are alsoformed correspondingly in the upper or outer surface of the head in thesocket member to provide not only for the bearing of the socket memberagainst the rim cl but for the movement of the post f through the slot4t of the rim d. The surface of this head is concentric with the surfaceof the rim (Z, thus providing the essential even bearing.

Upon opposite sides of the post 7 where the same projects within theboundary of the rim cl I secure saucer members 5 and I provide buffers hin pairs between the respective spokes 0 each provided with a bolt 7passing through an opening in the rim, with a clamping nut against theouter surface of the rim, and upon the opposing faces of these buffers hI secure or form integral therewith saucer members 6 and place helicalsprings 9 between the opposed saucer members, which form socketsreceiving the ends of the helical springs and prevent them becoming lostor displaced.

I provide packing gland members surrounding the socket members f andsecured to the inner surface of the tire e and each composed of anannulus member 71 fitting the opening in the tire and connected to thesame securely by a series of screws 10. An annulus gland member Z3 fitswithin the annulus 2' and is connected thereto by the exterior screwthread of the annulus is and an interior screw thread in the annulus a,and between the inner bent end of the annulus 2' which comes against theouter surface of the socket member 7 and the inner end of the annulusgland is, is a packing to hold lubricating material for lubricating theexterior surface of the socket member fand providing for the lubricationof said member, at the same time preventing a too free loosen or not asthe result of vibration in use.

'Within each socket member f is a helical spring Z and on the interiorsurface of the tire where each helical spring l bears thereon, there isprovided a fiat seat 6 Within the socket member f I provide a cap plate9, the outer surface of which is adapted to come against the end of thethreaded portion f of the post.

' In the operation of the device of my im- 7 provement, the helicalsprings Z yield to compensate for the weight upon the wheel.

7 The driving strain applied to the axle or shaft Z) and communicatedtherefrom to the hub a, spokes 0 and rim cl is applied against similarseries of the helical springs 9 according to the direction of rotationof the wheel and these are compressed. This action causes an expansionof the opposite series of helical springs g and a movement through theslots 4 of the rim d of the several posts f in starting the machine. Assoon as the pressure applied to the similar series of springs g is equalto the power applied to drive the vehicle, the tire e and the severalparts connecting the same with the posts f will turn with the hub, thespokes and the rim d, and the machine will move forward. As the machinegains headway and the rotation of the wheel becomes more constant, themomentum set up will help to reestablish an equilibrium or a conditionof substantially equal pressure between the respective series of helicalsprings and bring the several posts f to more nearly a central position.The torsion of starting the machine by applying power to the drivingwheel is thus partially absorbed and the machine started without ajerking motion.

The two series of anti-friction balls 8 in the raceways provided in theinner surface of the socket member f and the outer concentric'surface ofthe rim d serve to insure and steady the turning movement and reduce thefriction of the tire and the parts connected therewith in relation tothe rigid rim and also to prevent transverse displacement.

I prefer to employ a bolt 12 passing transversely through each sockethead and stem f to insure the connection of the parts and to employ asheet metal casing a surrounding the inner end of each socket memher 7and extending to contact with the rim d and held in place by screws 13and a bolt 12, so as to cover the antifriction balls and their groovesand keep out dust, dirt and water.

As the tire e is of metal it is of course entirely free from anyliability of injury from the surface of the road, and as the wheel isadapted to yield both for weight compression and driving torsion, thesame elastic or resilient effect is produced as with a pneumatic tire.

In the form of my invention shown in Fig. 4, the bufiers 72, are securedin place to the rim 0? the same as the buffers h in the other figures,these buffers 71, however are made integral with the saucer members (3and are provided with a bolt 14 and internal disk 15 for applyingtension to the helical spring 9 according to the work required of thesprings.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a spring wheel for vehicles, the combination with a rim, of a tireof metal of more than semi-circular form in cross section, with aflattened inner surface having spaced apart openings, annulus glandmembers secured to the tire at said opening, a socket member passingthrough each of the said gland members, a helical spring within eachsocket member and bearing surfaces therefor, and devices connected toeach socket member and to the rim respectively for connecting the tireand the rim and which devices have a spring function for taking up thedriving torsion.

2. In a spring wheel for vehicles, the combination with a rim, of a tireof metal of more than semi-circular form in cross section, with aflattened inner surface having spaced apart openings, annulus glandmembers secured to the tire at said opening, a socket member passingthrough each of the said gland members, a helical spring within eachsocket member and bearing surfaces therefor, a post connected to eachsocket member and passing through a slot formed in the rim in thedirection thereof and extending within the rim, buffer members socuredto the rim within the boundary thereof and upon opposite sides of thepost, saucer members connected respectively to the buffers and to thepost, and helical springs received within the saucer members which actas retainers for the spring.

3. In a spring Wheel for vehicles, the

combination With a rim slotted in the direction of the rim at spacedintervals, posts passing through said slots and devices for connectingthe posts to the rim in a yielding relation, socket members open at oneend and having a head at the other end and connected at said heads tosaid posts, oppositely disposed roWs of anti-friction balls in groovesrespectively in said rim and said head coming at opposite sides of saidposts providing for the movements of the posts and socket members overthe curved outer surface of the rim, a tire of hollow formation adaptedto receive the socket members,

means secured to the tire and surrounding and guiding the socket membersfor maintaining a movable relation of the socket members with the tireand at the same time preventing lost motion and spring devices Withinsaid socket members and bearings therefor Within the socket members andagainst the interior surface of the tire.

Signed by me this 23d day of February 1909.

CHARLES F. QUICK.

Witnesses:

Gno. T. PINGKNEY, E. ZAOI-IARIASEN.

